Spider-Man: Brand New Day Makes Marvel History With Its Historic Crossover

Spider-Man: Brand New Day made Marvel history with its unique cast. Tom Holland's 4th solo Spider-Man movie swung into theaters on July 31, and it featured numerous characters that haven’t appeared in a Spider-Man movie before. More notably, a good number of these characters are from five different studios, a scenario that hasn’t happened with any other MCU movie. Surprisingly, this has only happened with Brand New Day, despite previous films like Avengers: Endgame and Infinity War having a much larger cast.

Brand New Day takes place four years after the events of No Way Home and pulls numerous new people into Spider-Man's life in a world where everyone has forgotten who Peter Parker is. These new individuals are characters from Universal, Sony Pictures, Marvel Television, Disney, and 20th Century Fox. This unprecedented crossover is possible despite the complex film rights Marvel shared with some of these studios over the years.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day Features Characters Owned By 5 Different Studios

Spider-Man (Sony Pictures)

Sony Pictures has held the rights to Spider-Man since 1999, when the studio brokered a deal with Marvel to purchase the license. Sony went on to produce the 2002 Spider-Man movie directed by Sam Raimi, which expanded into a trilogy with two other movies being released in 2004 and 2007. 

Marvel officially began its cinematic universe in 2008 and went several years without the character until 2015, when it entered into an agreement with Sony that allowed both studios to share the film rights. 

This enabled Tom Holland to portray the character in several MCU crossovers and a trilogy, with Brand New Day being his fourth solo entry. In the movie, Peter faces a threat he's never experienced before, crossing paths with Jean Grey, a telepath hell-bent on destroying the agency that kidnapped her sister.

Jean Grey (20th Century Studios / Fox)

Jean Grey made history as the first X-Men character to appear in a live-action Spider-Man movie with Brand New Day. The character's rights initially belonged to 20th Century Fox until Disney purchased the studio in 2019. 

Before being acquired by Disney, Fox placed Jean Grey in several iconic X-Men films, including Bryan Singer's X-Men and X2: X-Men United, and Brett Ratner's X-Men: The Last Stand. Famke Janssen portrayed the character in those movies, and Sophie Turner in later films. Sadie Sink took over the role for Marvel Studios in Brand New Day, marking a historic crossover. 

Hulk (Universal Studios)

Universal Studios distributed 2003's Hulk and 2008's The Incredible Hulk. The Studio has first refusal for any Hulk movie, which is why the MCU hasn’t made a solo Hulk project since The Incredible Hulk. Marvel can, however, use the character in crossover movies like the Avengers films and Brand New Day. 

In the new Spider-Man movie, Mark Ruffalo's Bruce Banner plays a supporting role, appearing as a university professor Peter seeks help from. Things don’t turn out so well for Bruce when Jean Grey takes over his mind and destroys the inhibitor device keeping him from Hulking out. The Jade Giant goes on a rampage and engages Spider-Man in an epic battle, leaving destruction in his wake.

The Punisher (Marvel Television)

Frank Castle made his theatrical debut in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, keeping his R-rated tendencies at bay in the PG-13 epic. Jon Bernthal first played Frank in the Marvel Television series, The Punisher, which aired on Netflix for two seasons. Initially, the Marvel Television shows airing on Netflix weren’t MCU canon until Disney introduced its own streaming platform, Disney+, and folded those shows into the MCU. 

Bernthal went on to reprise the role in Daredevil: Born Again in 2025 and then headlined his own Disney+ Special Presentation, Punisher: One Last Kill, this year, before hopping to the silver screen with Brand New Day. In the Spidey adventure, Frank helps the web crawler stop the mysterious telepath toying with the minds of New Yorkers. 

Yelena Belova (Marvel Studios / Disney)

Florence Pugh was one of the surprise additions of Brand New Day, reprising her role as Yelena Belova. In the film, she advises Spider-Man on how to deal with the "small potato" and "big potato" challenges that come his way. Yelena isn’t bound by complex rights issues like other MCU characters, living strictly under Disney’s roof. 

She first appeared in 2021's Black Widow, a movie that served as the perfect send-off for Scarlett Johansson's Natasha Romanoff. Yelena then moved to streaming, appearing in the Disney+ series Hawkeye. Pugh later voiced the character in another Disney+ show, Marvel Zombies. 

Yelena's role in Brand New Day is brief, but her interaction with Peter in a bathhouse that doubles as her "office" quickly became one of the most talked-about moments in the film.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day's Historic Crossover Paid Off Handsomely 

Spider-Man: Brand New Day was well received by critics and audiences alike. Moviegoers rewarded Marvel Studios with one of its biggest box office successes in recent memory. The film surpassed Avengers: Endgame's domestic opening numbers, raking in $360 million, the biggest in box office history. The massive crossover contributed heavily to this success. 

Jon Bernthal's Punisher served as the perfect parallel and cautionary tale for Peter Parker, helping the web-slinger avoid the path of loneliness he was heading towards. Audiences loved the dynamic between the two, fuelling the positive word of mouth the movie enjoyed.

Bruce Banner also played a crucial role in the movie's success as audiences finally got to see the character return to his Savage Hulk roots. Brand New Day is the first film since Infinity War that shows Hulk in his primal form. The movie ended with Bruce in critical condition, a story thread that will likely be developed in future MCU movies, potentially Secret Wars. Jean Grey was equally influential, which isn’t surprising given that she's one of the most famous X-Men characters in Marvel history. It also helps that she's portrayed by arguably the best actress of her generation.